1. Field of the Invention
The present invention discloses an integrated structure pad assembly for wire bonding on active area in power semiconductor devices, particularly those with cellular structures such as power MOSFETs and Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors, and to a manufacturing process therefor.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
In power semiconductor devices such as those fabricated in MOS technology the chip area reserved to the bonding pads can be a significant fraction of the overall chip area. In the case for example of a low-voltage power MOSFET with a specified voltage rating of 100 V, the MOSFET current can be in the range of several tens of Amperes. To sustain such a current, the source wire must have a large diameter, typically 0.4-0.5 mm, and the area dedicated to bonding the wire to the chip must be of the order of 1.3.times.1.3 mm2. The situation is even worse when more than one source wire is necessary.
To overcome this problem, a technique in which the bonding areas are directly over the active area of the device is utilized without the necessity of providing dedicated pad areas. This technique is known as "bonding on active area", and allows a reduction in the chip size, since no areas are wasted for the realization of the bonding pads.
This technique however poses some problems, particularly as far as the soldering process between the wire and the chip metallization layer is concerned. Generally, aluminum wires having large diameters are soldered to the chip metallization layer by a technique known as "Ultrasonic Wire Bonding" (USWB). This technique consists of laying the wire to be soldered on the aluminum layer on the chip, applying a given vertical force to the wire, and simultaneously submitting the wire to an "ultrasonic discharge". The ultrasonic discharge, together with the pressure exerted on the wire, put the two surfaces into close contact, breaking down their superficial oxides so that soldering is obtained.
When Ultrasonic Wire Bonding on active area is carried out, for example on a power MOSFET chip, the significant mechanical stress to which the device is submitted during the bonding phase is transferred to the dielectric layers underlying the metallization layer, i.e. to the gate oxide layer and to the polysilicon gate layer, causing cracks in the oxide layer or microdefects which reduce the device reliability. The gate oxide layer, being generally the thinnest dielectric layer, is the most susceptible to such damage. The larger the diameter of the wires used, the more probable the phenomenon is. When wires of diameter larger than 0.4 mm are used, systematic damage can take place. Furthermore, since the technology trend in low-voltage power MOS devices is toward a reduction in the oxide layer thickness to reduce the output resistance and to increase the current densities, bonding on active area becomes more and more impractical.